Having Too Much Fun!

Here we go again! Give that woman a camera, put her in a car, and she'll bore you with all the details!

Zip and I spent last evening out having a good time with our friends Willa and Chuck. We drove to Harrisburg to dine at Mitaka, a dim sum/sushi restaurant. All of us love Adventures in Eating! Also Chuck and Willa were celebrating their 32nd anniversary.

I don't know what year it was (don't have my calculator) but don't they look cool!

OK, back to the food....


This is the aged tofu, which is fried tofu with a sauce of sweetened saki and soy sauce. On top are bonito flakes, tissue paper thin slices of fish that undulate from the heat of the tofu. Should have taken a video!

Willa and Chuck ordered several sushi rolls which were artfully presented. We all tried the dim sum, which is an assortment of small treats and dumplings that are traditionally eaten while drinking tea. None of us were brave enough to order the Phoenix Claw with Black Bean Sauce, which the waitress translated to be chicken feet!

Zip is eating the hibachi grilled shrimp, chicken and veggies, while Chuck very seriously considers his next move.

Willa and I are finished and discussing how we wIsh we could get hired as food critics. LOL! Oh, the ideal job! Traveling from restaurant to restaurant, tasting, evaluating, and writing about our experiences!

Afterward we stopped at Ashcomb near Williams Grove. Yes, another greenhouse! They were closing in 30 minutes so we didn't have much time. We were all fascinated by the bee hive they have in the store. The bees come and go through a pipe in the wall. You can watch them making their honey comb inside a glass and wooden frame. Shoulda gotten a picture!

And here they are (no, guys! they are NOT the Three Stooges!!! well, maybe the one on the right...) after a fun evening out. Hope we can do it again soon.


I promise, everyone! I will stay home for the rest of the weekend! And if I DO happen to go anywhere, I'll leave the camera at home!

(PLEASE TAKE HER CAMERA! NO MORE PICTURES!!!)
ESPECIALLY THOSE DARN GREENHOUSES!

More Time Off!

Yesterday, rainy and dreary again, we went to Lurgan greenhouse. It's hard to feel depressed about the weather among all the lovely plants and flowers. It's a cheerful burst of color everywhere you look!



These fountains, which didn't come out as well as I hoped are near the entrance. The other pictures are of several of the different greenhouse areas.

Look at these lovely fat koi! Someday I would like to have a pond large enough to house fish like those.

We got two small goldfish and a few snails for our little container water garden that we set up each year on the porch. It will look a lot better when the plants grow and the rocks and brick get covered with algae. The fish are unavailable for comment. They are under a broken flower pot because it's too cold and dreary to face the day.

I am saving the rest of the binding on my flower basket rug to take along Monday when Kathy and I go to Blue and Gray hooking. This weekend I plan to start on the Santa in a Snowstorm piece. Thought that way I may have it done by Christmas.

I know you are all amazed that after not writing for so long, here I am making two blog entries in a row. Could it be that I don't have enough to do since I'm off work??? hehehe! I'm enjoying every minute of it!

This evening we are dining out with friends at a dim sum and sushi restaurant in Harrisburg. It should be an interesting experience. Tomorrow there may be pictures and a blog entry about that, too!

Aaaaaahhh! Time Off!

Linda is off on her Hawaiian vacation. And I am not going to work during the two weeks that she'll be gone. Oh, Heavenly time off!! I intend to do exactly as I please and not a thing more!

Yesterday Zip and I took a little road trip, Mannings for me and the Yellow Breeches Shop for him. Mannings is off of route 234 before you get to East Berlin. This is the view from the bridge before turning into their property.

For those of you who have never been there, it is a spinning and weaving shop, featuring everything you would ever need to pursue these passtimes. Yesterday evening I was hoping to put binding on my flower basket rug but couldn't find my big yarn needle. I must have put it away somewhere SAFE! Mannings had many different yarn and darning needles to choose from. I bought eight of them and plan to put them each away in different safe places. I probably won't be able to find any of them!

And this is one small view of the yarn room at Mannings. Look at all of those lovely colors! And this is only a tiny part of the whole thing. There's loads more yarn, a huge collection of books and magazines, another room full of spinning wheels and one of looms too! Just too tempting! I did buy a few cones of weaving thread in anticipation of weaving again sometime in the future.

We ate lunch at Pomodora's/The Gettysburg Baking Company in Biglerville. It doesn't look like much from the outside, but inside.....! They make the most luscious pasteries and artisan breads! And they have a tiny restaurant section that only seats about 24 people. It's very gourmet and classy. We had pizza with asparagus and lemon and lavender goat cheese. Delish! The crust was thin like a pita and crispy. I want to be able to make pizza crust like that!

Then on to the Yellow Breeches Shop in Boiling Springs. Check it out! The flyfishing shop looks a lot like the yarn shop! LOL! Lots of threads, beads, fur and feathers!

While Zip was shopping, I walked around the Boiling Springs lake. It's a very small town with a lot of lovely old houses and the ones on the street that runs along the water are particularly nice. The have the area along the lake landscaped and mowed into a park area with benches under huge old trees. Here come the geese!

This Mother Goose had made her nest right beside the bridge that crosses the end of the lake where the spring enters. She didn't seem at all intimadated by my being only a few feet away. She did hiss when a woman and a dog walked by.

This is one of the lovely old homes that are built on the lakeshore.

This is a view of the whole lake. It was beginning to get stormy! It rained as we returned home along the Walnut Bottom road.

The remainder of the day was spent resting up. Never did start the rug binding! Too many needles, can't decide which one to use! LOL!

Hook-in at Grant Street Woolworks

We are having a hook-in at Grant Street Woolworks on Wednesday evening. Everyone is welcome! Even if you aren't a rughooker, you may bring a project of your choice to work on and sit and chat with us.

We are having the hook-in now because Linda will be on vacation the first two weeks in June. I will be taking a break from work at the same time. Yippeee!!! Two weeks to do nothing but hook! (well, not quite!)

You may come on Wednesday any time during the day, afternoon or evening. We usually post the hook-in time as 6 p.m., but we are there from 10 a.m. to late in the evening, so it really doesn't matter how early you arrive.

I finally finished the flower basket rug (except for the binding). Now on to the next project. Haven't decided what it will be yet.

Hope to see lots of friends on Wednesday!

For the Love of Cats

I had been scrolling back through my blog entries and discovered that it's been a long time since I posted any new rughooking patterns. I haven't been working on designs lately and still trying to finish my flower basket rug, plus lots of other stuff that needs to be done.


My cats were the original inspiration for designing rugs. They have such wonderful personalities that I wanted to commemorate in some significant and lasting way. What better to remember them by than making a rug in their honor!


This is Tipper when she was a half-grown kitten (she is now 7 years old). She's sitting in one of the molds that I use in basketmaking.




And this is Tipper's rug. I liked the idea of putting black and white Tipper on a black and white tile floor, with a little red and green thrown in for contrast and to match those amazing emerald green eyes.





Years ago I worked at Chambersburg Hospital as a lab tech.

I found Wizzard walking in the hallway of the hospital one evening when I was leaving work at 11 p.m.! I took her home with me and tried unsuccessfully to find her caretaker. She ended up staying with me, of course. She is now 17 or 18 years old and is totally blind. She spends her time sleeping in the bathroom closet, coming out several times a day for a little walk and a bite to eat.

She's still a sweet and lovable girl.

When she was younger she had a very wise and mysterious quality about her. Since I found her under such unusual circumstances, she seemed kind of magical.


So she became The Cosmic Wizzard in my rug.

My Two Little Cats rug is a small primitive that can be worked in colors to honor the cats of your choice. It measures 18 1/2 x 26 inches.

These patterns, and many more can be ordered through Grant Street Woolworks, 717 860-4628. Or you may contact me.

I hope the next time I post I will have a picture of the completed flower basket rug. It seems as though I have been working on it forever.

Until then, Happy Hooking!

Military Heritage Day

I am a peace-loving person. In fact, PEACE and QUIET are two of my favorite things! But since I work for Great War Militaria as well as the Grant Street Woolworks, and my son and daughter-in-law are a re-enactors, war is a part of my life.

The Army Heritage Museum in Carlisle, PA had it's military heritage day today and Brad and Kami were part of the program.

Here is Nurse Kami looking lovely in her uniform and overcoat. The surgical instruments and supplies are original from WW2. They are from the collection of a man in their unit.

Brad (on the right) and Ollie are standing in front of a large artillery piece that is on permanent display at the museum

These men are in Brad's unit. The motorcycle looks like fun, but I'm not so sure about that deadly looking weapon the one guy is holding.

Below is Frank sitting in front of his tent. Yes, they actually slept in those things last night! Check out the laundry on the line!!!

The heritage day represented every war from French and Indian (1700's) until the present day. Each group is expected to provide a learning experience for the public. Unfortunately we spent so much time talking to Brad's unit that we didn't have time to take pictures of the other displays. It was a lovely day and lots of spectators came out for an opportunity to view the uniforms and equipment from the many different time periods.

Like I stated earlier, war isn't something I advocate. But it was an interesting and enjoyable day.

A Reminder! Hook-in at Grant Street Woolworks Tomorrow evening (Thursday) at 6 pm. All are welcome!